Makanda, Illinois: Non-Gyrating Gyrator
Large replica of a spinning top that doubles as a sundial and solar calendar. Has languished in obscurity since 1988.
- Address:
- 460 Giant City Lodge Rd, Makanda, IL
- Directions:
- From US-51 take IL-29/Makanda Rd into town, then IL-12/Baptist Hill Rd to Giant City Rd. Follow the signs to the lodge. The Gyrator is just north of the Lodge, behind the parking lot.
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Tucked in near the garbage dumpsters behind a rustic 1930s lodge, the non-gyrating Gyrator has courted controversy from the day it was installed in December 1988. Originally it was painted bright blue, then dark blue, and now it's just black. Truth is, nobody wanted the odd, state-funded modern art sculpture in the first place... even though it's only steps away from the Buck Rogers-esque water tower. "Gyrator" is actually really cool! At night the North Star is aligned with a loop at the top and during the day at solar-noon a beam of light shines through. On the appropriate days the beam of light hits bronze markers on the ground indicating the changing of the seasons.
[Mike Gassmann, 09/11/2020]Nearby Offbeat Places
Buck Rogers-esque Water Tower, Makanda, IL - < 1 mi.
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